• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.17-26
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• 2009

As the lifestyle of consumers changes and the need for various products increases, new products are being developed in the market. Each household owns various home appliances which are purchased through the choice of a decision maker. These appliances include not only large-sized products such as TV, refrigerator, and washing machine, but also small-sized products such as microwave oven and air cleaner. There exists latent correlation among possession of home appliances, even though they are purchased independently. The purpose of this research is to analyze the effect of demographic factors on the purchase and possession of each home appliances, and to derive some relationships among various appliances. To achieve this purpose, the present status on the possession of each home appliances are investigated through consumer survey data on the electric and energy product. And a multivariate probit(MVP) model is applied for the empirical analysis. From the estimation results, some appliances show a substitutive or complementary pattern as expected, while others which look apparently unrelated have correlation by co-incidence. This research has several advantages compared to previous literatures on home appliances. First, this research focuses on the various products which are purchased by each household, while previous researches such as Matsukawa and Ito(1998) and Yoon(2007) focus just on a particular product. Second, the methodology of this research can consider a choice process of each product and correlation among products simultaneously. Lastly, this research can analyze not only a substitutive or complementary relationship in the same category, but also the correlation among products in the different categories. As the data on the possession of home appliances in each household has a characteristic of multiple choice, not a single choice, a MVP model are used for the empirical analysis. A MVP model is derived from a random utility model, and has an advantage compared to a multinomial logit model in that correlation among error terms can be derive(Manchanda et al., 1999; Edwards and Allenby, 2003). It is assumed that the error term has a normal distribution with zero mean and variance-covariance matrix ${\Omega}$. Hence, the sign and value of correlation coefficients means the relationship between two alternatives(Manchanda et al., 1999). This research uses the data of 'TEMEP Household ICT/Energy Survey (THIES) 2008' which is conducted by Technology Management, Economics and Policy Program in Seoul National University. The empirical analysis of this research is accomplished in two steps. First, a MVP model with demographic variables is estimated to analyze the effect of the characteristics of household on the purchase of each home appliances. In this research, some variables such as education level, region, size of family, average income, type of house are considered. Second, a MVP model excluding demographic variables is estimated to analyze the correlation among each home appliances. According to the estimation results of variance-covariance matrix, each households tend to own some appliances such as washing machine-refrigerator-cleaner-microwave oven, and air conditioner-dish washer-washing machine and so on. On the other hand, several products such as analog braun tube TV-digital braun tube TV and desktop PC-portable PC show a substitutive pattern. Lastly, the correlation map of home appliances are derived using multi-dimensional scaling(MDS) method based on the result of variance-covariance matrix. This research can provide significant implications for the firm's marketing strategies such as bundling, pricing, display and so on. In addition, this research can provide significant information for the development of convergence products and related technologies. A convergence product can decrease its market uncertainty, if two products which consumers tend to purchase together are integrated into it. The results of this research are more meaningful because it is based on the possession status of each household through the survey data.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.255-279
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• 2014

It is not too much to say that smartphones have become an essential part of our lives due to their versatility. Nevertheless, they still have less overall capabilities than their desktop counterparts. Specifically, they have small screens and low resolutions, which make their applications difficult to have a usable interface. To account for these limitations, the interface of smartphone applications should be designed carefully and properly. Good interface design to any application is critical. However, a comprehensive information systems (IS) literature review found that there has been little research on the user interface design of smartphone applications. More specifically, there has been little empirical evidence and understanding about how metaphors, an imaginative way of describing objects and concepts, in the user interface of smartphone applications affect users' intention to use the applications. Thereby, the research goals of this study are to examine 1) the effects of the metaphors in the user interface of smartphone applications on the interaction between users and applications and 2) the effects of mediating variables including the interaction between users and applications, users' beliefs and attitudes, on users' intention to use the applications. A survey was conducted to collect data. University students and practitioners participated in the survey. A 24-item questionnaire was developed on a 5-point Likert-type scale. The measurement items were mostly adapted from the previous studies in the IS literature and modified to fit the context of this study. First, a principal component factor analysis was performed to explore the inter-relationships among a set of variables. The analysis showed that most of the items loaded quite strongly on the six components. The analysis also revealed the six components with eigenvalues exceeding 1, explaining a total of 70.7 per cent of the variance. The reliabilities of the items were also checked. Most Cronbach alpha values were above 0.8, so the scales were considered reliable. In sum, the results of the analysis support the decision to retain the six factors for further investigation. Next, the structural model was analyzed with AMOS structural equation modeling. The values of GFI, AGFI, NFI, TLI, CFI, and RMSEA were checked. The values showed that the research model considerably have a good fit in general. Next, the convergent and discriminant validities of all constructs were examined. The values for the standardized regression weights and critical ration (CR) indicated sufficient convergent validity for all constructs. In addition, the square root of the average variance extracted (AVE) of each construct was compared with its correlations with all other constructs. The results supported discriminant validity for all constructs. In sum, the results of analysis demonstrated adequate convergent and discriminant validities for all constructs. Finally, path coefficients between the variables were examined. Methphor was found to have an impact on interaction (${\beta}$ = .457, p = .000). There were also significant effects of the interaction on perceived usefulness (${\beta}$ = .273, p = .000) and ease of use (${\beta}$ = .405, p = .000). User attitude was significantly influenced by these two beliefs, perceived usefulness (${\beta}$ = .386, p = .000) and ease of use (${\beta}$ = .347, p = .000) respectively. Further, the results of analysis found that users' intention to use smartphone applications was significantly influenced by user attitude (${\beta}$ = .567, p = .000). Based upon the analyses, all hypotheses were supported. This study found that the metaphors used in the interface of smartphone applications affect not only the interaction between users and applications, but also users' intention to use the applications through the mediating variables, perceived usefulness and ease of use. These findings imply that if the metaphors used in the user interface of application are easy enough to understand for smartphone users, then the application can be perceived useful and easy to use, which in turn make users to have an intention to use the application. In conclusion, this study contributed not only to validate and extend Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) partially, but also to develop the construct of metaphor in smartphone settings. However, since a single empirical study cannot be enough to validate the findings, some limitations should be considered.

• The KIPS Transactions:PartB
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• v.13B no.5 s.108
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• pp.561-568
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• 2006

WPS(Wearable Personal Station) for next generation PC can define as a core terminal of 'Ubiquitous Computing' that include information processing and network function and overcome spatial limitation in acquisition of new information. As a way to acquire significant dynamic gesture data of user from haptic devices, traditional gesture recognizer based on desktop-PC using wire communication module has several restrictions such as conditionality on space, complexity between transmission mediums(cable elements), limitation of motion and incommodiousness on use. Accordingly, in this paper, in order to overcome these problems, we implement hand gesture recognition system using fuzzy algorithm and neural network for Post PC(the embedded-ubiquitous environment using blue-tooth module and WPS). Also, we propose most efficient and reasonable hand gesture recognition interface for Post PC through evaluation and analysis of performance about each gesture recognition system. The proposed gesture recognition system consists of three modules: 1) gesture input module that processes motion of dynamic hand to input data 2) Relational Database Management System(hereafter, RDBMS) module to segment significant gestures from input data and 3) 2 each different recognition modulo: fuzzy max-min and neural network recognition module to recognize significant gesture of continuous / dynamic gestures. Experimental result shows the average recognition rate of 98.8% in fuzzy min-nin module and 96.7% in neural network recognition module about significantly dynamic gestures.

• Journal of Dental Rehabilitation and Applied Science
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.72-81
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• 2024

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the marginal and internal fit of 3-unit monolithic zirconia fixed partial dentures (FPDs) fabricated via computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) from solid working casts and removable die system. Materials and Methods: The tooth preparation protocol for a zirconia crown was executed on the mandibular right first premolar and mandibular right first molar, with the creation of a reference cast featuring an absent mandibular right second premolar. The reference cast was duplicated using polyvinyl siloxane impression, from which 20 working casts were fabricated following typical dental laboratory procedures. For comparative analysis, 10 FPDs were produced from a removable die system (RD group) and the remaining 10 FPDs from the solid working casts (S group). The casts were digitized using a dental desktop scanner to establish virtual casts and design the FPDs using CAD. The definitive 3-unit monolithic zirconia FPDs were fabricated via a CAM milling process. The seated FPDs on the reference cast underwent digital evaluation for marginal and internal fit. The Mann-Whitney U test was applied for statistical comparison between the two groups (α = 0.05). Results: The RD group showed significantly higher discrepancies in fit for both premolars and molars compared to the S group (P < 0.05), particularly in terms of marginal and occlusal gaps. Color mapping also highlighted more significant deviations in the RD group, especially in the marginal and occlusal regions. Conclusion: The study found that the discrepancies in marginal and occlusal fits of 3-unit monolithic zirconia FPDs were primarily associated with those fabricated using the removable die system. This indicates the significant impact of the fabrication method on the accuracy of FPDs.